Fearless
by BreeLand
Summary: "Curiosity is what got her into Dauntless. Curiosity is what got her in trouble. Curiosity is what made her fearless." Aurora's transfer from Amity to Dauntless wasn't planned. None of the rest of her life really was. And her one bad decision, transformed her life for the worst. Eric/Oc
1. I: First Jumper

**Chapter I**

_First Jumper_

On the day of her choosing ceremony, it rained; and Aurora arrived to the Hub on the back of a truck, along with other Amity teenagers and families. Most had umbrellas in their hands while she held her younger brother's in hers. The Erudite were dressed in blue, Candor in black and white, and Abnegation, who seemed to blend in with the gloom of the day, walked in grey. She herself, and everyone else in her faction, wore red and yellow – happy colors that didn't seem to quite fit the mood of the day.

And, despite the merciless rain drenching both Aurora and her family, they all had smiles on their faces. That was the only thing her faction truly understood: happiness. And no matter what happened today, whether Aurora stayed with her family or chose a different faction, her family would have a smile on their face and be happy for her. Aurora blamed it on the bread.

Her mother, Thalia, was the first one to hop off the trunk of the truck. Then came her brother, Oz, and her new father, Matthew. Amity was all about free love and being open. Both Aurora and Oz were born out of wedlock by two different fathers. The small boy, Asher, who was clenching Aurora's hand was the only one to be born after a marriage. She wasn't complaining though. Matthew was a sweet man, like most Amity, who cared a lot for Thalia.

Oz helped his sister down, and she assisted Asher off, hoisting the four year old up by his arms and setting him down on the ground. She the pulled him up by his forearms, slinging him around her, so that he was riding on her back.

"One day, you're going to snap his arms off or drop him," Oz commented playfully. He punched his sister lightly in the arm.

"No, I'm not uncoordinated like you," she replied bumping his shoulder. Asher giggled at the gestured and begun swinging side to side on his sister's back.

Thalia sighed, "No fighting you two. Today is a joyful day. Don't ruin it, Oz."

"Mom, we're just playing," Aurora assured before she kicked her brother in the back of the leg.

Clumsily, Oz tripped, but quickly recovered. He gave his sister a death glare that only lasted a few seconds before the two started laughing and smiling again. They had always gotten along. Oz was less than a year younger than her because the two had been born back to back.

"When we get home," he began, "I'm going to make you pay for that, Rory!"

He tugged on her curly hair, causing her to yelp in pain before slapping him upside the head. Their fight was interrupted by the sound of a train. Everyone outside turned to see the commotion that Dauntless was about to cause. Without the train stopping, Dauntless teenagers jumped from the train. They were shouting and laughing as they did so, as if they had all the energy in the world.

If she seen it once, she'd seen it a thousand times. Aurora always watched the Dauntless carelessly jump out of the trains. She worked in the Amity fields after all. They always flung themselves out like monkeys before rolling on the hard ground. Asher, who had never seem the Dauntless jump out of a train, was filled with excitement.

"That's so cool!" Asher exclaimed, pointing to the men and women dressed in black and red.

"I don't see how they live like that!" Oz stated, watching them in disgust. He plucked Asher off of Aurora's back and placed him next to their mother. He didn't want his little brother watching another minute of madness.

Aurora watched the Dauntless-born with longing, almost sighing as she watched them rush towards the Hub. "Is Dauntless really that bad?" She asked, her question not really directed at any one in particular.

Oz was the first to answer, "I heard that they jump from buildings just for the fun of it!"

"No way," Asher gasped in excitement.

"Mom," Aurora said, "is that true?"

Thalia smiled at her daughter. It was a reassuring smile. "I don't know, sweetie. I'm sure they don't."

"I wonder," she muttered to herself before staring off at the Dauntless.

"What?" Oz asked after hearing her mutter.

She turned towards him, "I wonder how it would feel to jump out of a moving train."

"You shouldn't think about such things, Aurora," he scolded, "Dauntless are going to turn you crazy."

"Don't you wonder though?" She asked.

"No."

"Well," she stated, "I do."

"After the ceremony, ask one of them."

"I will."

"Aurora!" The familiar voice of Sara called out to Aurora. She turned, seeing her life long friend from Amity.

Sara was the perfect example of the golden Amity child. She was always happy, just like Asher, and she was the kindest person Aurora had ever met. The two of them had stuck together throughout school. If Aurora knew one thing, she knew that Sara would pick Amity.

"Sara!" She called, leaving her brother and family behind. She rushed over to the blonde, waving and smiling. "You seem excited."

"I just can't wait!"

"So," Aurora said, "you're choosing Amity."

Sara's smile seemed to waver. "Aren't you?"

"Rory!" Mathew called from the entrance of the Hub. Both Sara and Rory turned to see him waving for them to hurry along.

"Coming!" She yelled back.

Sara wrapped her arm around her friend's neck. "We should probably head in. We are already late."

The elevator was crowded mostly with Erudite and Candor families. Most of the abnegation members decided to take the stairs wanting to be "selfless". Aurora didn't understand abnegation. How could you ever be happy if you're pleasing others all the time. Sure, it was the kind thing to do, but she would be miserable for the rest of her life in that faction.

The room was arranged in concentric circles. On the edges stand the sixteen-year-olds of every faction. Everyone was arranged in alphabetical order, according to the last names. Being that Aurora's last name was Odious, she sat near the middle, and in her opinion, it was the perfect spot. She didn't have to chose first and she didn't have to die of anticipation to chose either. She was content.

Sara, whose last name was Lane was seated a few rows in front of Aurora. Once the two were seated away from each other, they had a silent conversation from afar. Aurora would make faces and Sara would make them back, meaning different words. Some of the faces made Aurora silently laugh, but their conversation was cut short when the ceremony begun with a speech everyone knew. And after the applauds of the crowd, the first name was called, and a Erudite girl was sent up to choose. She chose quickly, and decided to stay in her own faction.

Applauds came from the happy faction as they welcome backed their member. The mother hugged her daughter, and kissed her on the head. Aurora couldn't help but smile. In a few moments, that would be her. She would choose Amity, and her mother and brothers would embrace her, happy to have her back.

This process went on and on. Sara's turn came and Aurora smiled as she walked to the platform. Her smile dropped when applauds didn't come from Amity, but from Abnegation. Her eyes were wide, watching as Sara walked to her new faction.

Sara's brown eyes kept darting towards Aurora as the ceremony continued. Sara smiled at her and nodded her head. It was like a silent gesture that encouraged Aurora.

"You okay?" Oz asked. He was also staring at Sara. He knew that that was his sister's best friend.

Aurora nodded, "Of course," she whispered with a forced smile.

"Aurora Odious."

She didn't hesitate to stand up. Her brother's hand tightened around hers, his eyes pleading for her not to go. She sweetly looked at him, then to Thalia who knew what to do. She took the four year old in her arms and held him. Aurora walked up to the bowls, staring at one in particular; She slice her palm. _I wonder,_she thought.

She heard the sizzling of coals and the uproar of cheering.

Silence came from the Amity group. Aurora dared to spare a glance at her family. For the first time in her life, she saw a frown on her mother's face. Oz looked as though he had been stabbed in the heart, and even Mathew was shocked. Sara stared at her friend. And for a split moment, Aurora wished she had picked Amity, but then that moment passed.

Guiltily, yet happily, Aurora made her way over to the group of Dauntless. A few transfers sat in the front. There were five from Erudite, and three from Candor, but none from Amity. She was the only one wearing red and yellow. Her happiness suddenly turned into nervousness. She had never felt so alone.

"Hey," a deep voice said. Aurora glanced up to come face to face with the largest person she had ever seen; her age anyway. He had sun kissed skin that didn't seem to match his platinum mohawk. His biceps were bigger than her head, and his arms barely fit the sleeves of his shirt. His face was filled with piercings: snakebites, nose ring, and a bar going through his ear.

"Hi," she said back pleasantly.

A smirk coated his lips. "Aren't you a bit small for Dauntless." It was more of a statement than a question. Aurora didn't see herself as small. She was nearly as tall as most boys.

"Aren't you a bit big for that chair?" She replied without a moment hesitation.

He let out a laugh before getting up from his seat. Thinking she had angered him, Aurora backed away a few feet, thinking she was going to be killed in front of everyone.

"You can have my seat, softie," he told her. He then moved to go lean against the wall, paying her no more attention.

Aurora stared at the seat, but wasted no time to sit down in it. She didn't want to seem ungrateful, because she was grateful, and she didn't want him to come anywhere near her again. "_Softie_?" she murmured to herself after remembering the name. Was he referring to her lack of muscle?

It didn't seem long before the last person chose. Aurora stood along with all the Dauntless, who existed first. She didn't know what to expect, but the moment the Dauntless started running, she did too. They reached the outside, rain pouring on them once again. They started making noises: screams, shouts, laughter, and whoops.

Aurora can't help but laugh. She had never felt so alive. She was able to keep up with the Dauntless-borns, and even felt like she was apart of the group. They stopped underneath the train tracks, and began to climb up.

Confused, Aurora followed the Dauntless-born as they climbed to get to the train tracks. She had to admit, it did make her feel alive. The rain poured down on them as they grabbing the steel and rose to the tracks. Finally there, they waited. Rain still came down, harsher than ever; and...Aurora loved it!

The sound of the train hummed in her ears and it rushed passed her. She had seen one many times but, never this close. Smiling, she watched the other Dauntless-born teens as they ran down the path along the track, and jumped onto the train. Understanding what she had to do, Aurora took off in a sprint. She rushed down the path, then jumped, catching a wall, and hoisted herself up.

Panting, she leaned herself up against one of the back walls, watching the open doors as more and more people join into the train. She counted the number of initiates. She saw that they had decreased in number. At least three of the initiates were missing. She didn't she the girl from Erudite, and she didn't see a boy and girl from Candor.

Looking around she spotted a boy, dressed in blue, who stood at one of the many open entrances of the train. Aurora could only see the back of his head, which was covered in brown hair. He was hanging halfway out, staring at something and looking nervous. Aurora positioned herself to see what he was seeing.

It was a girl. She was running and crying as she chased after the train desperately. Her blonde hair flowed behind her, weighing her down. For a second, Aurora could see the Erudite boy hesitated to reach an arm out for her to grab, but didn't do anything. Then, all at once, he reached his arms out as he stood on the very edge of the train.

"Almost," he muttered as the girl noticed his hand.

She sped up, pumping her long legs to get to him.

"Almost," he murmured to himself again.

The girl grazed his finger tips right before the train hit a bump. Suddenly, their connection was gone. She was factionless, and he had failed. The boy lost his footing and nearly flew out the entrance. Aurora only took a second to grab his blue sleeve and wrap her hands around his forearm.

He looked at her bewildered as if he hadn't expected anyone to help him, as if he was a goner. Aurora curled her toes into the ground, trying to keep herself from sliding out of the train as well.

"Give me your other arm!" She screamed over the rushing of the wind.

He nodded, throwing his left arm towards her. Aurora caught onto it and pulled. She yanked on him with such a force that the two went tumbling from the entrance to the back of the train. He fell on top of her, crushing her with his weight. Aurora glanced up at the face that was now above hers.

To describe his appearance would be pointless because he seemed like a person who didn't care what you thought of the way he looked. He was nothing special, just another blue-eyed kid from Erudite. He was thin and pale like a ghost. Brown hair framed his heart-shaped face. His cheekbones sat high on his, and a frown was formed on his lips; yet Aurora smiled at him.

She had pearl white teeth, with dimples that were one of her only features she got from her mother. Her smile could cause anyone to follow her lead, but it didn't seem to charm this Erudite transfer. He stared down at her like the concept of happiness was foreign.

He quickly corrected himself by standing up and dusting his clothes. He reached a hand out to her, reminding her of what he had done for the now factionless girl a few moments ago.

"I'm Aurora," she said, grabbing onto his hand as he hoisted her up.

"Quinn."

Aurora nodded, "Are you okay?"

"Fine."

It was another one word answer. _He must be antisocial_, she thought.

"You really shouldn't be so careless," she commented. Aurora glanced from the entranced where he nearly fell out from to the strange boy in front of her.

He rolled his eyes at her, "Maybe you should have joined Abnegation." It was his first time saying more than a one word answer.

"Nah," she whisper, "I'm way too selfish."

Quinn batted his eyelashes as if he hadn't expected her to reply like that. He simple said, "You sure seem to care a lot about me."

"You nearly died." She said it so simply.

"Don't rub it in!" he snapped.

Taken aback, she politely tried to said, "I'm not." She then muttered under her breath, "Just stating facts."

Catching her words, Quinn hissed, "Again...rubbing it in."

"Has anyone ever told you that your grumpy?"

"Has anyone ever told you that your just like a Candor."

Candor wasn't exactly friends with the Amity faction. To put it bluntly, like a Candor would, they hated each other; and Amity people never used the word hate unless it was absolutely necessary. Candor believed that "Those who seek peace will always deceive to keep the waters calm", and are therefore prone to be dishonest for the sake of respect. And while Amity are not viewed by Candor as "liars" or "deceivers" in the most traditional sense, their habit of denying their true selves in favor of that which is accepted by others as a whole for the sake of unity is a form of deception by Candor standards. Amity is not opposed to white or even direct lies, if it helps to keep the peace, since peace is what they value most.

"Never call me that again."

And with that, the conversation was over. Quinn stared at Aurora and she stared back. Once he knew that she would no longer speak to him, he turned his head, glancing out of the windows. They road the train in silence for what seemed like hours. Aurora watched the buildings fly by and the fields come into view; the fields that she would never visit again.

"Are they jumping?"

Her head snapped up to look at the Dauntless-born who waited at the open doors of the train. They flew out like flying-squirrels and soared to the ledge of a building, rolling to avoid injury. Quinn's mouth was open wide, his eyes bugging out as far as they could go.

"They are seriously jumping..." he whispered dumbfounded.

Aurora had to make a decision: jump or become factionless. She readied herself at the door, bending her knees and closed her eyes.

"You can't really be thinking about doing this!" Quinn shouted at her, his mouth still in an o shape.

She smiled at him, "Close your mouth before you catch flies." And then she jumped.

Her body became weightless, as she floated to the edge of the building. She tucked her body in and rolled just as the Dauntless-born had done. And with the a beam of pride, she stood and walked to the already gathering crowd of initiates and born members.

Quinn was next to follow after her. He flew out the train, flopping on the ground and nearly busting his face open. Gravel engraved his hands from when he had tried to break his fall. He silently cursed to himself as he tried to catch up with his new acquaintance, Aurora.

"Do you enjoy pain?" he questioned, grabbing her shoulder roughly.

Before she could answer, a shout sounded, "Listen up," it said, "My name is Max and I'm one of the leaders of Dauntless. Below us is the entrance to our compound. If you aren't brave enough to enter, you don't belong here." A few gulps from initiates were heard. "Our initiates have the privilege to jump off first." He smirked at that. Like their fear was entertainment to him.

_Just our luck,_ Aurora thought, _more jumping! _

"You're crazy!" A girl from Erudite shouted.

"She's right," Quinn seconded, "what type of sick joke is this?"

Max crossed his arms. "Care to run that by me again, initiate?"

At that, Quinn seemed to have lost his whits. "Its just..." he stammered, "the logic of us jumping...its illogical! We could die! Think of the statistics."

"Okay," Max said in a drawl, "think about this. Jump or become factionless."

"So, there's a possibility that we might die?" Aurora asked. She wasn't really worried. The dauntless-borns must have done it hundreds of times in their lives, and they weren't dead yet. Besides, what type of faction would kill off all their transfers.

"Can't really say," Max replied, "Ask your Erudite buddy for some statistics, because he knows everything."

Aurora saw Quinn's cheeks flush out the corner of her eye. His hands gripped into a fist, and he looked angry. She guessed that he didn't like being made fun of.

"I'll do it," she said to Max.

Quinn went from mad to shocked. He grabbed her arm before saying, "You're crazy!"

She simply smiled at him. "You never live unless you get close to death, right?"

"Yeah, well, you're about to be dead!"

Aurora broke free of his hold on her arm, and walked through the crowd. Once at the ledge, she looked down. The building she was on formed one side of a square with three other buildings. In the center of the square is a huge hole was the concrete. The bottom was a pit of darkness that she couldn't see.

With a smile on her face she climbed onto the ledge. Happiness was the only would running through her head. _Be happy, Aurora. You are out of Amity, and if you jump, you'll be in Dauntless,_ she thought to herself. Without even thinking anymore on the subject, her left foot dangled freely, then her right, and she fell.

Her body twirled and jerked as she fell. Time seemed to become a thing of the past as she dropped towards the dark void, hoping that something was there to catch her when time did regain itself. The wind in her face made it impossible to breathe. She felt like she'd suffocate before she would hit an end. For a full half-minute, Aurora went downward at a speed that constricted her throat so that she could hardly draw breath.

As sudden as her jump had been, she hit a net. Aurora's body jerked, propelling her high up into the air. The shocked surprise expressed itself onto her facial features. A strange feeling built up inside her like so much water behind a dam, making her shoulders shake and her belly hurt. When it erupted from her mouth it sounded more like a dying donkey as she fought to breathe and stifle the tears. She was leaning back on the net and was laughing uproariously. The giggles rolled out of her like the waves on a long shallow beach.

Adeline was the only word that came to her mind as she continued to laugh. When she was on top of the building, looking down, she thought that this was crazy; but now, she just wanted to do it again, and again until she could no longer laugh.

A face came into her view. Dark brown eyes met hers and she smiled.

"Hi," she whispered breathlessly to him. Aurora ran a hand through her curly hair.

As if taken aback, he muttered, "hi."

"I'm Aurora, or just Rory." She placed her hand out for him to shake. A bright smile coated her lips as she waited. Her Amity was showing.

"Four."

He grabbed her hand hesitantly, and shook. He then wrapped his hands around her waist and hoisted her out of the net. Aurora gripped onto his shoulders as he set her on the ground.

Before she could even thank him, he was shouting, "first jumper: Rory!"


	2. II: First Night

**_Thank you to all of those who reviewed my first chapter, and to all of those who sent me messages supporting this story. I am sorry I am so late on an update._**

**_..._**

**_Chapter II_**

_First Night_

A bubbly laugh erupted from Aurora's lips as she watch Quinn jump. Out of all the initiates, he was the last one; and his jump was not one to miss. Quinn wasn't exactly the most graceful jumper. He came down, tumbling. He was screaming and flapping his arms like a mad person before hitting the net. A few people began to snicker after she did. Aurora had to admit, he did look like a chicken.

Four helped Quinn, who was very much winded, out of the net. The initiate didn't even thank him before stalking over to Aurora. "You," he said, "You are one crazy girl. You know that?"

She found his comment quite hilarious. She regarded his insult as a simple complement. Aurora smiled, "thanks!"

"That wasn't a complement!" he hissed.

"Listen up!" Four yelled in a stern voice. Aurora was beginning to think that his speech would be like Max's. She was hoping they didn't have to do anything else today besides eat and sleep. After running from the ceremony, jumping on a moving train, jumping off a moving train, and then jumping from a building, Aurora would say she had the right to complain about being tired. "Dauntless-borns, go with Lauren. Initiates, stay here."

Lauren gestured for the dauntless-born to follow her down a narrow tunnel made of stone. Aurora watched as the Dauntless-born left, spotting the platinum blond guy. He was staring directly at her as he walked away, and even smiled at her before leaving completely.

"My name is Four," their tour-guide suddenly announced. Aurora turned her attention back to him, her eyes leaving the dauntless-born who gave up his seat for her. "I usually work in the control room, but until initiation is over, I will be working with you. For the next few weeks, I am your instructor. If you will follow me, we are making our way to the Pit." He began to walk down the same path Lauren had just taken. Aurora assumed that they were going on a tour of the dauntless compound.

No one spoke. Aurora assumed it was out of fear of what would happen if they did. Everyone simply walked in a single file line behind Four. At the end of the tunnel was a set of double doors, which Four opened for the group, thus revealing "The Pit".

The person who named this place wasn't very creative. It was a pit. No doubt about it. It was a large cave made of uneven rock, and narrow paths. Dauntless people were everywhere, causing Aurora to think that this was the main place to be in the Dauntless compound.

Four continued along the paths, that had no railing. Quinn looked worried, and Aurora knew he was. He stood as far away from the edge as he could, being cautious about every step. Aurora couldn't blame him. One wrong move and you could fall off and die.

_Wouldn't that be tragic_, she thought while looking over the edge in curiosity, _Dauntless initiate carelessly dies on their first day._ She could hear the rumors now.

"If you follow me, we will be seeing the chasm."

The group of initiates followed hi to the right side of the Pit. It was dark, and as you approached there was a rushing noise that rung in their ears. The floor which they were standing on ended at an iron barrier. Aurora looked down to see the source of the noise: water. The floor dropped off at a weird angle, revealing a river of sorts. Fast-moving water was crashing against rocks and gushing everywhere.

"There is a difference between bravery and stupidity," Four announced to the group. Everyone turned to look at him, breaking out of their bewildered states. "Many have jumped off of this ledge and died, and many will do it again. You've been warned."

Without another world he beckoned for the teenagers to follow him to another part of the Pit. Along the way, Four briefly explained where to go and how things worked: the basics. He assured all of them that they would catch on to the Dauntless ways with time, and that they would learn the rules as they go.

Finally, Four led the group across the Pit and towards a small hole. Once entered, it wasn't as small as Aurora had thought. It was a grand dinning hall, full of Dauntless. Everyone was dressed in black. Everyone was talking. Everyone was making noise. It was the loudest room Aurora had ever been in.

"Hey, softie!"

There was that word again, and it came from the same voice that had said it the first time. Aurora turned around to see the platinum boy waving at her. He was gesturing for her to come over and sit with him. She noticed that there was a girl sitting next to him as well.

She resembled him in the face. They both possessed a sharp nose, and high cut cheekbones. Her cheeks were so deep that it looked as though they were sculpted into her face. Her nose, lip, and ears were pierced; and tattoos coated her arms. Unlike the mohawk male, her hair was more of a natural color. It was a deep brown, which matched her blue eyes very well.

"Come on," Aurora said to Quinn, who was looking for empty seats. She grabbed him by the sleeve of his shirt and pulled him towards the boy with the mohawk.

"Where are we-" he was about to ask one question before he saw the guy waving Aurora over, and another formed on his tongue. "How do you know him?"

"I don't."

The two cautiously walked over to the table. Aurora took long strides and held her head in the air. She wanted to be confident, yet she still felt so small.

"Callum," the older girl said, "who's this softie?"

"Did you bring your banjo to sing us a song?" the boy with a mohawk—Callum—asked.

"Nope," Rory replied. "Did you bring yours?"

The older female busted into laughter while Callum held a stern look on his face. Quinn started to fidget with his finger tips. Aurora noted this as a nervous habit. He seemed to be so socially awkward.

He tapped Aurora on the shoulder. "Aurora, let's sit somewhere else."

Suddenly, Callum laughed. "No, we're just messing with ya'. I'm Callum." He held out his hand to Quinn. He reluctantly took it and shook his hand quickly. Rory could tell that Quinn didn't like him.

"Quinn."

"Are you softie's boyfriend?" He asked.

Quinn blushed before sitting down. "No, he is not. And my name's Rory, not softie." Her tone wasn't harsh when she corrected him; actually, it was quite playful. She extended her hand out to him for a proper greeting. Callum shook it with a large boy-like grin smacked on his lips.

"Oh," the older girl interjected. " so, you're the first jumper of the year. How'd it go."

Aurora smiled. "Actually," she said, "it was fun." She took a hamburger from the pile on the table and placed in on her plate.

"You should have saw her, Claire!" Callum laughed, "She told Max that she would do it when everyone was freaking out." Aurora silently noted that the older girl's name was Claire.

"Bet it would have been a sight to see. Why did ya' transfer?"

Aurora stopped eating. She didn't really know how to answer that question, especially because no one had ever asked her that. "To be honest," she murmured, picking the bun off her burger, " really don't know."

"So, you just decided Dauntless." It was more of a statement than a question from Claire.

She smiled, "Let's just call it a trail."

"You do understand that you have to go through initiation right?" Claire asked.

"Yeah, I mean, how hard can that be. In Amity, all you do is sing songs and be happy. I'm pretty sure yours can't be any harder."

Callum nearly choked on his drink. "Oh, princess, you are in for a rude awakening."

Both Quinn and Rory stopped eating and looked at each other. Suddenly, Aurora felt her heart drop into her stomach, and she lost her appetite. Something told her that initiation here wasn't a joke; and it worried her.

After dinner, Four handed the initiates over to another male who couldn't have been older than seventeen. He was intimidating for his age though. His face had more piercings than Callum's did. She lost count after the nose ring, the lip piercing, and the three rings on his on his eye brow. His hair was long, dark, and greasy. He looked like the stereotypical Dauntless member.

"For those of you who don't know, my name is Eric," he said. "I am one of the leaders here at Dauntless."

At that statement, many of the initiates were bewildered. Aurora was also shocked. He was so young... To be a leader of a faction was hard work. He looked like her could have been an initiate himself.

"Initiation is a very serious process, and I will oversee your training. We have rules. You have to be in the training room by eight o'clock. Training is everyday from eight to six. You can do whatever you want after six," he began, "You can only leave the compound when accompanied by a Dauntless. Behind me is your room. You will be staying here for the next few weeks. In the first stage of initiation-"

"First stage?" Quinn questioned. "How many stages are there?"

"If you let me finish," Eric said harshly, "then you wouldn't have to ask dumb questions. Now, as I was saying. In the first stage of initiation, we keep transfers and Dauntless-born initiates separated. At the end of initiation, your rankings will be determined in comparison with the Dauntless-born. Your ranking serves two purposes. The first is that it determines the order in which you will select a job after initiation. There are only a few desirable positions available. The second purpose is that only the top ten initiates are made members."

"Wait," Marley, and initiate from Candor, interrupted. "How does that work?"

Irritation was all over Eric's face. "I just explained it to you. So tell me," he got extremely close to Marley's face. "Are you deaf, stupid, or dumb."

Marley backed down, looking towards the ground and shuffling away from Eric. Quinn piped up. "What do you do with the other members?"

"What other members?" Eric asked seriously.

"Not the top ten."

He smirked, and almost laughed. "They aren't members."

"Meaning?" Astrid asked.

"They're factionless aren't they?" Aurora asked.

"We got a smart one."

Aurora felt her stomach twist. She now knew the Callum meant about a rude awakening, because she just woke up, and realized that initiation wasn't going to be easy. "That's inhuman," she muttered.

"Is it?" he asked, bored with the initiates. He was now just picking at his finger tips.

"You can't just make a bunch of teenagers factionless!" She told him.

His smirk widened. "I can, and I will."

For the rest of the night, the initiates were down in the dumps. Astrid—who transferred from Candor—couldn't stop fidgeting. She had bitten her nails until they were now nonexistent. She was now ripping at the skin. Marley was trying his best to calm her down. He sat on her bed, rubbing her back, and telling her that everyone was going to make it.

_**Lies.**_

"This is horrible!" Quinn complained. He was in the corner of the room, changing his clothes. He was too embarrassed to do it in front of everyone else, so he faced the wall.

Aurora—who was rolling around on her bed—shrugged. "We picked it."

"It goes to show you that we have a bad taste in factions," Quinn retorted. He slipped on his pants and zipped them.

"It's not that bad."

He pulled his shirt over his head, and stepped away from the wall."Oh really? Most of us won't even become members, and then we will become factionless."

"Yes," Rory agreed, "or we could become members and have fun in Dauntless!" She tried her best to smile even though she herself was terrified.

"Are you even human?"He questioned, plopping onto the bed next to hers. He pulled the covers up to his chin and turned to stare at her.

"Last time I checked, I was."

"I swear, you are too positive."

For the rest of the night, the two didn't speak. They drifted off into whatever kind of sleep they could get. It was hard to sleep when you had Astrid whining, Marley trying to calm her down, Dayton and Derek horsing around and the two girls—Sage and Hayden—yapping all night. Yet, Quinn and Aurora made do with what they had.


End file.
